New Mexico woman charged after newborn found dead in portable toilet at Burn Lake

Sonia Jimenez, 38, faces felony child abuse charges after her newborn was found dead in a porta-potty holding tank in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Newborn found dead in portable toilet at Burn Lake, New Mexico

A 38-year-old woman in New Mexico has been charged with felony child abuse resulting in death after her newborn baby girl was found dead inside a portable toilet, according to people.com.

Sonia Jimenez was booked on Wednesday 11 February and charged with one count of intentional abuse of a child resulting in death, per Doña Ana County public arrest records and Doña Ana County Magistrate Court records.

Medical staff at Memorial Medical Center contacted police at around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday 7 February after a woman arrived at the hospital who "appeared to have just delivered a baby, but the baby was not with her," according to a statement published on Facebook by the Las Cruces Police Department (LCPD).

Hospital staff told officers that Jimenez's boyfriend, who had driven her to the hospital, said the pair had earlier visited Burn Lake, a small lake in the area, and that Jimenez had used a portable restroom there.

Officers travelled to Burn Lake and inspected the portable toilets on site. They discovered a deceased baby girl in the holding tank of one of the units.

"Investigators believe Jimenez gave birth to a live baby, cut the umbilical cord and placed the child in the holding tank where she drowned," the LCPD said in its release.

An autopsy confirmed the infant was alive when she was placed inside the portable toilet. The post-mortem examination found she "breathed and swallowed the blue chemical liquid commonly used in portable restroom sanitation," according to police.

Investigators said they do not believe Jimenez's boyfriend was aware she had given birth, and no charges against him are planned at this stage.

Las Cruces Police Chief Jeremy Story described the case as among the most distressing he had encountered. "This is one of the most heartbreaking and disturbing cases I have encountered in my career," Story said in an email to the Santa Fe New Mexican. "We will work closely with the District Attorney's Office to pursue justice for this baby girl."

Jimenez is currently held at the Doña Ana County Detention Center without bond. It is not yet known whether she has legal representation.

Source: The Sun